DiToMo – Digitalization of tourist mobility services for the last mile
Climate-friendly travel to leisure and tourism destinations by public transport is not always easy: The destination is often not accessible by public transport or is very difficult to reach, and existing shuttle services are little known. Salzburg Research and mobyome KG aim to close this gap between public transport and tourism destinations through digitalization.
When traveling by public transport from urban centers to rural tourist destinations in a climate-friendly manner, the problem often arises that the actual destination cannot be reached by public transport using the information provided in public transport information portals, route planners, and MaaS applications. Gaps are particularly evident in the so-called last mile, i.e., from the last public transport stop to the actual destination. Search queries for public transport routes result in an unreasonable walking distance for many destinations (sightseeing, accommodations, hiking trails) on the last mile, or the destinations are listed as inaccessible.
On the other hand, tourism associations, regions, local authorities, and individual accommodation providers offer various mobility services – e.g., hiking buses, hotel shuttles, or bike rentals. What is particularly striking about tourism mobility services is that they are often not organized and commissioned through transport associations, but rather by tourism associations and organizations as well as private companies (e.g., accommodation providers). Information about these tourism mobility services is often only presented on their own websites or in information brochures; in some cases, dedicated mobile applications are necessary to search for and use an offer. The DiToMo project addresses this problem of climate-friendly arrival and departure by public transport at leisure and tourism destinations.
The project provides solution modules for digitizing mobility services in the leisure and tourism sectors so that they can be integrated into route information systems to provide seamless information for the entire mobility chain. Specifically, the following results are targeted:
- Overview of currently available climate-friendly tourism mobility offers for the last mile and analysis of the gaps in the offer for two selected pilot regions
- Definition of a uniform standard for the digitalization of climate-friendly mobility services for the last mile as machine-processable information so that they can be integrated into route planning systems or mobility applications
- Definition of processes, responsibilities and incentives for easy data collection, maintenance and provision by tourism stakeholders
- Demonstration of feasibility using two pilot regions from data collection to integration into a route planning system
- Derivation of recommendations for action for Austria-wide implementation
Implementing the project will enable continuous public transport information, including tourist mobility options complementing public transport, to be provided on the last mile. Closing this information gap will create an essential foundation for changing mobility behavior during tourist arrival and departure. The DiToMo project is coordinated by Salzburg Research Forschungsgesellschaft mbH and implemented jointly with mobyome KG. In addition to the Austrian Mobility Associations and Verkehrsauskunft Österreich (Austrian Transport Information), the project is also supported by SalzburgerLand Tourismus GmbH, Salzkammergut Tourismus Marketing GmbH, the Traunsee-Almtal Tourism Association, NLW-Tourismus Marketing GmbH, and the Salzburg and Upper Austria regional associations of the Austrian Alpine Club.
The DiToMo project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology as part of Mobility 2023 – Urban Mobility and Vehicle Technologies.
